Fruit or Leaves? Jesus Diagnoses Your Faith

Introduction

In Mark 11, Jesus finally arrives in Jerusalem. In just a few verses, he is hailed as the Messiah, curses a barren fig tree, drives the merchants out of the temple, and teaches his disciples about faith, prayer, and forgiveness. At first glance, the text seems to go in every direction. But Jesus is doing just one thing: he is helping us diagnose our faith. He is helping us see the truth about ourselves, so that we can finally live out what we say we believe.

Sermon Outline

1. What we think of ourselves is not always true

• Jason opens the message with a personal example: diagnosed last February with autism spectrum disorder and ADHD, he realized that what he thought about himself wasn't true. He wasn't "a bit dumb", he simply lacked certain tools.
• This diagnosis is a gift, because seeing what is truly true allows us to grow and to handle things differently.
• The same is true of our faith: many Christians think about their faith in a way that doesn't match reality.
• Mark 11 is exactly this kind of text: Jesus helps us diagnose where we actually stand with God.

2. The triumphal entry (Mark 11:1-11)

• Jesus arrives at Bethany, east of Jerusalem, and sends two disciples to fetch a colt that no one has ever ridden. Everything happens exactly as he foretold: even as he walks toward the cross, he is the one in control of everything.
• Riding on this colt, Jesus fulfills the prophecy of Zechariah 9 concerning the Messiah. The crowd spreads cloaks and branches on his path, like a royal red carpet.
• The cry "Hosanna" literally means "save us." By speaking of "the coming kingdom of our father David," the crowd recognizes Jesus as the Messiah, the promised king, the one who comes to save God's people.
• These people respond to Jesus exactly as they should. He truly is the awaited Savior.

3. The cursed fig tree and the purified temple (Mark 11:12-19)

• The next day, Jesus sees a fig tree covered in leaves from a distance. He approaches it, finds only leaves, and curses it. Mark specifies: it was not the season for figs, and Jesus knew it.
• This is not a fit of bad temper, it is a calculated act. In the Old Testament, the prophets used objects to illustrate a message: Amos with a plumb line, Jeremiah with a yoke. Jesus does the same thing. The fig tree is a classic image used to speak of the people of Israel.
• Arriving at the temple, Jesus overturns the tables of the money changers and drives out those selling doves. He quotes Isaiah 56: "My house shall be called a house of prayer for all nations," but it has become "a den of robbers."
• These merchants occupied the outer court, the only place in the temple where non-Jews could pray. Their place of prayer had been stolen from them to become a place of commerce. Jesus purifies the temple for the nations.

4. The withered fig tree: a living parable (Mark 11:20-21)

• The next morning, Peter sees the fig tree withered to its roots and is amazed. Here Mark uses what Jason calls "the sandwich": fig tree – temple – fig tree. The structure is deliberate; it is meant to show us a connection.
• The fig tree had leaves but no fruit. The temple had the appearance of the house of God, but God had essentially been banished from it. Because of the leaders' hypocrisy, the whole purpose of the temple was obscured.
• Jesus's only miracle of destruction is a warning: God will judge a people who have the appearance of piety but bear no fruit.

5. Two marks of true faith: prayer and forgiveness (Mark 11:22-26)

• Jesus responds to Peter's astonishment: "Have faith in God." When he speaks of telling "this mountain" to throw itself into the sea, he is not speaking of a generic mountain: from the Mount of Olives, he is likely pointing to either the temple mount or the Mount of Olives itself, Zechariah 14 foretold that it would split on the day of judgment.
• The message is clear: God's plan will be accomplished. The temple will be destroyed, which happened in AD 70 by the Roman army. But true disciples will not be like the barren fig tree.
• The inward aspect, prayer: Jesus encourages us to pray with confidence and to truly expect God to answer. Two traps to avoid: the "word of faith" mentality (God owes me a parking spot because I prayed), and the more subtle trap in our own circles, praying out of duty without real hope. As John Piper said, God always gives us exactly what we ask for in prayer, or else something even better.
• The outward aspect, forgiveness: "If you have something against someone, forgive them." Jesus is not talking about emotion, he is talking about a willful refusal to forgive. Praying to the God who forgave us in Christ while willfully refusing to forgive others is a deeply hypocritical act.

Key Takeaways

• Jesus's only miracle of destruction is a mirror: it shows us that a people who have leaves but no fruit will be judged.
• The fig tree–temple–fig tree sandwich is no accident. Mark structures his account to show us that the real issue is the gap between appearance and reality.
• The mountain that faith can move is not a generic wish: it is God's plan that will be accomplished, including the judgment of the temple.
• True faith has an inward aspect (confident prayer, born of real intimacy with God) and an outward aspect (willing forgiveness that resembles the forgiveness we have received).
• Seeing ourselves as we truly are is not bad news. It is the condition for beginning to change and to bear real fruit.

Personal Application

1. If Jesus approached your life the way he approached the fig tree, would he find fruit or only leaves?
2. What is the real place of prayer in your relationship with God today? Do you pray out of duty, or with the confidence a child has toward their father?
3. Is there someone you willfully refuse to forgive? What does that refusal say about your understanding of the grace you have received in Christ?
4. In what area of your Christian life are you playing a role without truly knowing God? Where do you keep God at a distance because you know what he would ask of you?
5. If a close friend told you what they see of your faith from the outside, would they describe a tree in full bloom, or a tree with leaves but no fruit?

Scriptures Cited

• Mark 11:1-26
• Zechariah 9 (the Messiah on a colt)
• Isaiah 56:7 (a house of prayer for all nations)
• Zechariah 14 (the Mount of Olives split on the day of judgment)
• Mark 11:22-26 (faith, prayer, and forgiveness)

Further reading

• What Does Repentance Mean in the Bible?
• Which Bible Translation Should You Choose?
• What Is Christian Fellowship?

Frequently Asked Questions

Why does Jesus curse a fig tree when it isn't the season for figs?

Jesus is not throwing a morning tantrum. The fig tree is an image God has used since the Old Testament to speak of Israel. A tree that has leaves but no fruit looks healthy from a distance, but disappoints up close. That is exactly what happens in the temple right afterward: an appearance of piety without the fruit that should be there. The withered fig tree is a living parable of the coming judgment on a people who have appearance without reality.

Does Jesus really promise that if we have enough faith, God will do anything we ask?

No. Jesus is speaking of a specific mountain, probably the temple mount or the Mount of Olives, both visible from where he stands. He is announcing to his disciples that God's plan will be fulfilled: the temple and Jerusalem will be judged. Verses 23-24 are not a blank check, but a call to pray with real confidence in God's goodness and wisdom. As John Piper said, God always gives us exactly what we ask for in prayer, or else something better.

What should I do if I can't manage to forgive someone who has hurt me?

Jesus is not talking here about the emotion or feeling that accompanies forgiveness. Recovering from a wound takes time, and it's normal not to feel full of grace at the moment you must forgive. What Jesus condemns is the willful refusal to forgive. When we draw near to God, we know it is because Christ was punished in our place. Willfully refusing to forgive others stands in deep contradiction to the grace we ask for ourselves.